


That Little Coffee Shop

by NikAdair



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Barista Lance, coffee shop AU, vaguely college au, wholesome content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-31
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:07:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28455810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NikAdair/pseuds/NikAdair
Summary: Lance connected his phone to the speakers overhead, scrolling through his playlists until he found his work one. He pressed play, and the shop came alive with music. He tossed the keys to Pidge, and they unlocked the door, flicking on the open sign. The sun had broken over the horizon, and they were ready for the day.
Kudos: 5





	That Little Coffee Shop

**Author's Note:**

> My piece for the Blue Moon Lance Zine!  
> Been meaning to post this for a while, but just been forgetting. But given that it's New Year's Eve, I thought why not post it today? End 2020 with the last few VLD fics that I can post.  
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

The sun had barely risen when Lance walked into the little coffee shop not too far from campus. The bell rang above the door, and he could already smell the familiar scent of pastries baking in the back. He smiled and walked behind the counter, grabbing an apron before pushing his way through the doors to the back.

“Hunk, please tell me something is ready,” he said, walking over to said friend, who was currently busy rolling crescents and placing them on a sheet pan. He glanced over his shoulder at Lance, and Lance trotted over. “Well?”

Hunk pointed over to one of the counters where a plate of muffins was sitting. Lance saw them and smiled wide, wrapping a quick hug around Hunk’s shoulders that left him teetering before basically sprinting over to the plate. He nabbed one, reveling in the warmth from what must have been them having just been taken out of the oven, and turned back to his friend.

“Have I told you lately how much I love and appreciate you?” Lance asked, hopping onto the counter. Hunk turned and scowled a little, placing the pan in the oven.

“Only every day we work. And could you please not sit on the counter? I put foot there.” Lance stuck his tongue out, taking a bite of his muffin. It was chocolate chip and the chocolate melted perfectly in his mouth. He hummed happily.

The doors opened beside him and he turned, seeing a very tired looking Pidge walk in followed by Keith, who looked like he’d rolled out of bed and threw on his clothes without so much as a nod to fixing his knotted and wild hair.

“Get off the counter Lance,” Pidge said, walking past him and grabbing a muffin for themselves. Lance rolled his eyes with a smile before looking at Keith

“So, just not feel like fixing that mullet of yours? I’m sure we could do a quick cut job and not have to worry about the nest look.”

Keith turned and scowled at him before attempting to run a hand through his hair, only for his fingers to get caught in the various knots. Lance laughed, earning another scowl. Hunk walked over, shoving Lance’s shoulder a little. “Come on guys. As much as I love just standing around and hanging out, we do have a shop to open and coffee to brew.”

As if to prove his point, Lance’s phone alarm went off, telling him that he indeed needed to get coffee started. He took another bite of his muffin and jumped off the counter, spinning around Keith to walk back to the front.

He got the machines started, the front instantly smelling like coffee grounds. Lance took a moment to just stand there and take in the scents. He smiled. It was one of his favourite parts of working there. While the coffee brewed, he checked the dates on their creams and milks, making sure they still smelled good and were usable.

Lance went about checking the syrups, replacing the ones that were running low. He wiped down the counters from the night before, grimacing a little at the fact the people who worked when he wasn’t there seemed to have a hard time keeping things clean. It really wasn’t that hard.

Pidge and Keith came out from the back, going around the seating area and setting chairs on the ground and wiping down tables. They made sure that the napkins and straws were filled. They did a quick sweep of the floor while Lance finished up everything he was doing.

Hunk came out a few minutes before they opened carrying trays of food and putting them into their display cases. He left the doors open to help keep the windows from steaming too much, and Lance spun around him to the front of the counter, giving the customer side of the window a quick wipe down. Satisfied that they wouldn’t steam, Hunk closed the doors, and everything was ready to be opened.

Lance connected his phone to the speakers overhead, scrolling through his playlists until he found his work one. He pressed play, and the shop came alive with music. He tossed the keys to Pidge, and they unlocked the door, flicking on the open sign. The sun had broken over the horizon, and they were ready for the day.

-.-.-

“Thank you for coming! Enjoy your coffee!” Lance called, waving as a group of teens walked out. The bell jangled as it closed, and he sighed, leaning on the counter. There were a few other people there, mostly students from the nearby college, but the shop was fairly quiet. The only sounds in the shop were the music playing overhead and Hunk clattering the back, cleaning dishes and getting things ready for the next day. But other than that, it was pretty quiet.

He moved over to the coffee grinders, getting them started to do the same. If he was being honest, one of his favourite parts of the job, other than being able to meet and talk to so many new people, was getting things ready. The smell of freshly ground coffee was so much better at the end of his shift than the beginning. The sweetness that came from cleaning out the baked good cases always had his stomach rumbling. Just getting things cleaned up and ready for another day of work was relaxing, in its own weird way.

But his most favourite part? Getting to eat the leftovers from that day. They didn’t keep well and they definitely couldn’t be sold the next day, so most of what was left normally got thrown out. But the shop owner -- Coran, bless that man -- had told them that they were allowed to take whatever when the day was over. “Better for it to be eaten than to be thrown out,” Coran had said when he’d hired him.

Lance checked the clock -- another hour and a half before closing -- and he sighed. He thought about bugging Hunk, but with Pidge on break and Keith doing god knows what (which happened too often for his liking), he couldn’t really leave the counter. Which wasn’t a total concern to him, because he liked working out front. But being out there with no customers and nothing to do was a little boring.

The bell rang and Lance peeked over, perking up when he saw who’d walked in. “Lura!” he half shouted, walking back to the counter. Allura came over, rolling her eyes. “So, your usual?”

“Yeah, definitely. But can I also get a large hot chocolate?” Allura asked, her face going a little red.

It definitely did not go unnoticed. “What’s got you going all red?” Lance asked, quirking an eyebrow as he rang up her order. That made her face go even more red, and Lance chuckled.

“I-it’s nothing! Really!”

“Sure it is.” Allura turned away and Lance laughed. “I’m kidding you know.” Allura shook her head a little and paid for the drinks while Lance started getting them ready.

A large iced coffee with vanilla and caramel syrup. Caramel drizzled down the sides of the cup. Sweet cream and liquid sugar added. He’d made it so many times that it was basically second nature. Hot chocolate was also second nature to him, since Hunk was a huge fan of them. Steamed milk and chocolate syrup. Mixed to where there was no syrup clinging to the bottom of the cup. Whipped cream swirled on top and cocoa powder dusted over it. Just enough to add colour. He added some chocolate shavings since he gave Allura a bit of a hard time.

“Alright. Large caramel vanilla iced coffee with liquid sugar, sweet cream, and caramel drizzle, and a large hot chocolate with whipped cream and chocolate shavings! Here you go!” Lance said, bringing the drinks over to the counter. Allura took the drinks with a ‘thank you’ and scurried out of the shop.

Lance watched with a smile, knowing full well what was going on. But he would help in any way he could, even if it was just making an extra drink. He went back over and started getting things cleaned up, tossing out the old coffee grounds and refilling the cream containers. Wiping down the syrup spouts and bottles. Making sure everything was back where it needed to be.

Byt the time he was done with everything, the shop was empty and it was almost time to close. Keith wandered back to the front followed by a yawning Pidge, and they took a few of the baked goods that were left. Hunk followed soon after, flour covering parts of his shirt where his apron didn’t reach. Lance took the rest, putting them in a bag and placing it on the floor.

After a quick wipe of the display case, the clock finally ticked over to closing. Pidge went back to help Hunk get things cleaned up, and Keith helped Lance get things swept and mopped. They made a game out of who could get the most tables wiped and chairs stacked, to add a little fun to their clean up routine, and Lance cheered at beating him.

When all was said and done, they walked out together and Lance locked up behind them. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow!” Lance called, walking backwards down the road. Everyone waved and he smiled, spinning on his heel. He didn’t live too far from the shop, so he didn’t bother driving. Besides, walking back home wasn’t really that big a deal.

Lance made it home and kicked off his shoes, getting ready for bed. He looked forward to work the next day. Was really glad that he’d been able to get a job at the coffee shop. That he got to meet all his friends there. He sighed with a smile, curling up under his blanket. Yeah, he really did love his job at the little coffee shop near campus.


End file.
